Illegal gold panner stabs friend to death
AN illegal gold panner from West Nicholson in Gwanda allegedly fatally stabbed his colleague for mocking him for ditching his wife and cohabiting with a sex worker.
Linos Nsingo (30) and the late Mr Cabanga Ncube were conducting illegal gold panning activities together with several other gold panners at Geelong Mine in West Nicholson when a misunderstanding ensued between the two.
Mr Ncube had allegedly provoked Nsingo by telling him that he left his wife at his rural home to cohabit with an HIV-positive sex worker.
Nsingo was angered by Mr Ncube’s utterances and he immediately pulled out a knife and stabbed the deceased several times leading to his death.
This emerged when Nsingo, through his lawyers Dube and Associates filed an application for bail pending trial at the Bulawayo High Court citing the State as respondent.
The State did not oppose the bail application.
Justice Christopher Dube-Banda granted Nsingo $5 000 bail and ordered him to report at Gwanda Police Station every fortnight as part of the bail conditions.
Nsingo was further ordered to continue residing at his given address and not interfere with State witnesses until the matter is finalised.
In his bail statement, Nsingo is denying the charge, arguing that there is no evidence linking him to the offence.
The applicant who has been in incarceration for three years awaiting trial, said there were no compelling reasons warranting his continued detention.
“It serves the ends of justice to grant me bail since I have been in custody for three years. I have not been tried as a result of the State’s failure to secure witnesses and the delay infringes on my right to be tried within a reasonable period,” said Nsingo.
According to court papers, it was stated that on June 16, 2017, Nsingo and Mr Ncube were at Geelong Mine panning for gold when an altercation ensued. Mr Ncube allegedly told Nsingo that he ditched his wife in order to stay with an HIV-positive sex worker.
This did not go down well with Nsingo who pulled out an okapi knife and stabbed Mr Ncube and he died on the spot.
After committing the alleged offence, Nsingo fled from the scene leaving the body lying in a pool of blood. He went to the bush where he threw away the knife to conceal evidence.
The matter was reported to the police leading to Nsingo’s arrest.
The Chronicle